Two nights after the Pitt men’s basketball team beat North Carolina for the fifth time in six tries, the Panthers wrestlers will try to get on the right end of a result against the Tar Heels.

Coach Keith Gavin has never beaten North Carolina in five tries, and Pitt is just 2-7 against UNC since joining the ACC.

“That’s the one team that we always find a way to lose to,” Gavin said. “We’ve beaten N.C. State and (Virginia) Tech. They have a good team this year. They have been banged up, but they have everybody back. It’s going to be close.”

The match, which will be held at the Petersen Events Center and shown live on the ACC Network, is one of two big duals for the No. 18 Panthers this weekend. Third-ranked Iowa State will visit Fitzgerald Field House for a 7 p.m. match on Saturday.

While the Cyclones come in with the higher ranking, Friday’s dual with the Tar Heels carries more weight. Pitt and North Carolina are tied atop the ACC standings at 2-0. A Pitt victory would put Gavin’s team in the driver’s seat heading into next week’s showdown at No. 8 North Carolina State, which already has a loss to Virginia Tech. Pitt, which beat the Hokies last week, will close out its dual season by hosting Duke on Feb. 18.

“I think the guys are definitely excited for it,” Gavin said. “They have a great opportunity to solidify the No. 1 spot in the ACC on Friday, and Saturday you get to wrestle one of the best teams in the country.”

Key battle in ACC

Pitt won the ACC dual meet championship in 2013-14, its first season in the league, but hasn’t been able to match that feat or win a conference tournament championship.

“Obviously, the ACC is very competitive,” Gavin said. “It’s crazy how back-and-forth it is. I think a lot of people didn’t expect us to do this well this year.”

It’s been an up-and-down season in some regards, but last week’s 26-12 victory in Blacksburg was not only a high point for this group of Panthers, but it ranks as one of the program’s biggest wins in years.

It started with Colton Camacho’s fall at 125 pounds. Camacho has won three straight bouts with all of those bringing bonus points to the Panthers. He’s 13-6 and ranked 33rd by Intermat. What looked like a question mark in the lineup has turned in a solid weight. Camacho has scored 34 team points, tying Nino Bonaccorsi for the most on the team.

“He’s been very consistent this year,” Gavin said of Camacho. “He’s really enjoying it. This is the first year that he’s been very disciplined with his weight. He’s making it with no problem. He grew up a little bit. That’s helped him have the energy. And he likes to wrestle. He likes to compete.”

Camacho will face No. 19 Jack Wagner on Friday night. A grad transfer from Northern Iowa, Wagner took Micky Phillippi to tiebreaker 3 at the Illinois Matmen Open last season.

The 125-pound bout could be one of the keys to the UNC dual, as will No. 3 Cole Matthews’ match with No. 13 Lachlan McNeil.

Brothers Holden and Reece Heller posted huge wins for the Panthers last week, and they face more crucial matchups against the Tar Heels. At 165, No. 23 Holden Heller will face either Joey Mazzara or Gino Esposito. No. 18 Reece Heller, who was the ACC Wrestler of the Week after pinning Hunter Bolen, draws another tough matchup in No. 13 Gavin Kane.

The Panthers will have one big change to their lineup. Dazjon “Cheez” Casto, who beat 2021 NCAA champion Austin O’Connor at the national tournament last season, suffered an injury against Virginia Tech and will miss both duals this weekend. Jared Keslar, who is 11-2 as a true freshman, draws the difficult task of facing O’Connor, who is 13-0 this season.

All of Keslar’s matches have been at 165, but Gavin said the Connellsville grad will be at 157 next season and had planned to wrestle that weight at the Edinboro Open on Sunday.

The dual is at the Petersen Events Center, Pitt’s only time at the arena this season.

“When it works out and you have the opportunity to do that, we want to do that,” Gavin said of hosting duals at the Pete.

Cyclones warning

Say one thing for West Virginia – the Mountaineers’ Big 12 affiliation has done wonders for Pitt’s out-of-conference schedule. Iowa State wrestles in Morgantown Friday night, so coach Kevin Dresser, who knew that his team would be flying out of Pittsburgh anyway, asked Gavin for a Saturday dual in Oakland.

The result is a matchup that is intriguing for Pitt fans and gives the Panthers another chance to face some great competition prior to the postseason.

“Obviously, we’re in ACC dual meet time, but it’s important to get them ready for nationals,” Gavin said.

Look for Pitt to try to schedule a similar date next season when Oklahoma State wrestles at West Virginia.

Iowa State has won 25 of its past 27 duals dating to last season, with the lone losses coming to Penn State and Iowa, so predicting a Pitt upset would be going out on a limb, but it’s not that far-fetched. The fact that both teams wrestle a conference dual the night before could impact the lineups, but if it’s starter vs. starter – minus Casto – Pitt matches up pretty well with the Cyclones. Wrestlestat’s predictor, which includes Casto, has it 16-16.

“Obviously, they’re a very good team, but it’s very similar to Virginia Tech,” Gavin said. “The first three are big but if you win those, we’re in a good spot.”

Camacho and Micky Phillippi each have unranked wrestlers while No. 3 Cole Matthews draws No 24 Casey Swiderski. The dual could close with three straight ranked-vs.-ranked matchups. No. 2 Bonaccorsi’s bout with No. 5 Yonger Bastida could be huge. Bonaccorsi has never wrestled the Cuban.

“It’s a good style matchup,” Gavin said. “They’re both very good on their feet. Bastida is maybe a little more athletic.”

The dual could come down to No. 5 Dayton Pitzer vs. No. 10 Sam Schuyler.

If the Panthers can wrestle like they did against Virginia Tech, another victory over a top-10 team isn’t out of the question.

“It’s one of the best wins we’ve had in a long time,” Gavin said of the performance in Blacksburg. “We won seven matches against a very good team. What I look for is following that up. The way that we compete is going to be important. We have got to come out with that same energy.”

No. 18 Pitt (8-2, 2-0 in ACC) vs. North Carolina (6-6, 2-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Petersen Events Center

ACC Network

PROBABLE LINEUPS

125-#33 Colton Camacho, RS-Jr., 13-6 vs. #19 Jack Wagner, RS-Sr.* 18-5

133-#6 Micky Phillippi, RS-Sr.*, 9-1 vs. Jace Palmer, RS-Fr., 12-9

141-#3 Cole Matthews, RS-Sr., 13-1 vs. #13 Lachlan McNeil, RS-Fr., 18-4

149-#29 Tyler Badgett, RS-So., 14-8 vs. #27 Zach Sherman, RS-Sr.*, 4-3 OR Will Guida, RS-So., 19-10 OR Jayden Scott, Fr., 14-5

157-Jared Keslar, Fr., 11-2 vs. #3 Austin O’Connor, RS-Sr.*, 13-0

165-#23 Holden Heller, RS-Sr., 9-4 vs. Joey Mazzara, RS-Sr., 13-7 OR Gino Esposito, RS-Sr.*, 7-7

174-Luca Augustine, RS-Fr., 10-7 vs. #8 Clay Lautt, RS-Sr.*, 6-2 OR Michael Goldfeder, RS-Sr., 12-7

184-#18 Reece Heller, RS-Jr., 15-3 vs. #13 Gavin Kane, Jr., 18-4

197-#2 Nino Bonaccorsi, RS-Sr.*, 10-0 vs. Cade Lautt, RS-So., 7-3 OR Max Shaw, RS-Jr., 11-6

285-#5 Dayton Pitzer, Fr, 6-1 vs. Brandon Whitman, Sr., 9-12

No. 18 Pitt (8-2) vs. No. 3 Iowa State (12-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Fitzgerald Field House

ACC Network Extra/ESPN+

PROBABLE LINEUPS

125-#33 Colton Camacho, RS-Jr., 13-6 vs. Caleb Fuessley, RS-Jr., 7-9 OR Conor Knpick, RS-Fr., 7-3

133-#6 Micky Phillippi, RS-Sr.*, 9-1 vs. Zach Redding, Jr., 11-6

141-#3 Cole Matthews, RS-Sr., 13-1 vs. #24 Casey Swiderski, Fr., 8-4

149-#29 Tyler Badgett, RS-So., 14-8 vs. #10 Paniro Johnson, Fr., 10-3

157-Jared Keslar, Fr., 11-2 vs. #27 Jason Kraisser, Sr., 15-8 OR Cam Robinson, RS-So., 17-3

165-#23 Holden Heller, RS-Sr., 9-4 vs. #2 David Carr, RS-Sr., 14-0

174-Luca Augustine, RS-Fr., 10-7 vs. #25 Julien Broderson, RS-Jr., 13-7

184-#18 Reece Heller, RS-Jr., 15-3 vs. #4 Marcus Coleman, RS-Sr.*, 13-1 OR Joel Devine, RS-Sr., 19-6

197-#2 Nino Bonaccorsi, RS-Sr.*, 10-0 vs. #5 Yonger Bastida, Jr., 12-1

285-#5 Dayton Pitzer, Fr, 6-1 vs. #10 Sam Schuyler, RS-Sr.*, 10-2